As usual, the timeline is between chapters 158 and 159.
The perspective is Toriumi’s.
Drinking.
Please be cautious.
“First, when we return to the original world, our physical condition will probably revert back to normal. So, there’s no problem in terms of physical reasons, right? And since this is a different world, we don’t have to apply the laws of our world here. Plus, no one’s here to find fault with us.”
“But… what about our conscience…?”
“Kariya would definitely get into terrible things with dirty jokes if he got drunk.”
“No, no, no, I think Hagasaki would also get into terrible things if he got drunk.”
On the table we’re gathered around, there are, you see, several bottles!
One is in a ceramic pot. One is in a clear glass bottle with something like fruit in it. One is in a brown glass bottle. And one is a beautiful, transparent peach color in a crystal bottle.
The design of the bottles is intricate, and the colors visible through the glass and crystal are beautiful, almost like craftwork. Ah, this is indeed another world.
“Generally, it’s not a problem if we receive them as gifts, right? It’s a rare opportunity in another world, after all.”
Today, as a prize for fighting in the coliseum of Deichemoorel, I got these with Suzumoto and Hagasaki.
…Well, we kind of want to try drinking them, right?
“Wait, wait! You guys are minors! You should wait until you’re twenty to drink alcohol!”
Maito seems to be the type who wants to stick to the rules… or rather, Maito is probably weak to alcohol, I guess.
“But Maito, you’ve already drunk at social gatherings, haven’t you?”
But getting stuck for words when Hariu pointed it out shows her soft spot.
“Come on, it’s a rare opportunity in another world. It’s special.”
Hariu seems genuinely interested, which is kind of funny.
I wonder if he’s strong? Well, I don’t know.
“…Well, it’s a special occasion, so… yeah, why not.”
Oh, and here Katori falls into temptation!
“It might be a good opportunity to test my alcohol tolerance. If I get acute alcohol poisoning, I just have to drink an antidote, so there’s no worry.”
President falls for a different reason! Ah, so to President, alcohol is also a poison, huh? Impressive.
I think drinking in moderation isn’t poisonous, though. Strange, everyone seems ready to drink excessively.
“Well, it’s such an opportunity. It’d be a shame to waste the spoils of battle.”
“Maybe, it’s okay to do this much.”
“…Guess so.”
And, in the end, everyone but Maito falls into temptation.
Well, it’s a special occasion, after all. It’s okay, right? Since it’s special.
“Then, let’s open them up. This one seems to be the weakest, right?”
While half of us are still deciding to just watch, Hariu excitedly opens the bottle that seems to be fruit liquor.
With a nice pop, he pulls out the cork and pours it into a glass made from magic ore, which was also a part of the prize.
The transparent glass supposedly keeps the temperature of its contents while preventing evaporation.
It’s like something I’d want as laboratory equipment.
“Let’s call this a taste test.”
Then, Hariu drinks.
…As everyone watches, after taking a sip, Hariu comments,
“Hmm, it’s like juice with alcohol in it. Oh, is that all? That’s the impression.”
Well, that’s unimpressive!
“Does that mean it’s sweet? Oh, can I have some too?”
Then, Katori takes a little, takes a sip.
“…Ah, yes. As a drink, it’s quite tasty, I think.”
At the word “tasty,” you can see Maito wavering.
Maito likes sweet things, after all, can’t help it.
“Then, I’ll have some too.”
…I don’t dislike sweet things either, so, can’t help it!
This is my first time drinking alcohol, but it’s just a “huh” experience.
It’s like, nothing dramatically changes or anything.
But I kind of like the taste of this?
It’s sweet and sour, fruity, and I think it’s delicious.
“Just a little taste test…”
And just when I thought Maito finally gave in, she didn’t.
“Just a bit of the taste memory…”
Huh? Ah… she means to “share” just the taste.
“Huh? That way? Well, alright.”
She wanted to bump foreheads, so after I lifted my bangs, she gently touched hers to mine and quickly backed away.
“…It’s sweet. Seems like it tastes good with the fruit flavor. Tastes like it could get you drunk, though.”
Oh, she’s wavering!
“I’ll take some too.”
Ah, Suzumoto is joining in.
“Me too.”
Ah, Hagasaki is also joining in.
…Everyone participates, and the contents of the bottle steadily decrease.
“Maito, are you really okay with this? I think this is probably the weakest one.”
After showing her the remaining amount in the bottle for the final push, Maito finally gives in.
“…I’ll take a little.”
Yes, Maito has fallen too!
See, it’s more fun when everyone does it together, right? That’s how these things are.
“Can I open this one?”
After everyone had a taste of the fruit wine, President started reaching for the ceramic pot.
Hmm, that one seems stronger, but since we’re going to drink an antidote anyway, it might be worth a try.
“…How do we open this?”
“Um… the lid is stuck on this, right?”
After removing the paper that covered the mouth of the pot, a lid that seemed firmly glued on appeared.
It looks like it’s attached with plaster or something.
“Should we break it?”
“Gentlemen, have you forgotten about my existence? ‘Clean’.”
Just as President was about to break the mouth part, Maito neatly removed just the lid with her broom.
Maito is really handy, after all.
“Ah, this one is also quite sweet.”
I had the impression that liquor in pots would be strong, but this one seems pretty easy to drink.
When I tried a bit, it had a mix of floral fragrance, sweetness, and a bit of bitterness.
It’s not as refreshing as the previous fruit wine, but it’s mellow and pretty tasty too.
“Let’s open this one too.”
And at the same time, the brown bottle was opened.
“…Bitter…”
“Is that so, bitter, huh? Then I’ll pass.”
Judging by Kadomi’s reaction when he tasted it, it didn’t seem very delicious.
Well, I guess alcohol is supposed to be bitter.
“If no one wants to drink this, then I’ll take it.”
After everyone tasted it and had a round of “It’s bitter, huh?” “Yeah,” President took the bottle.
…He said he’s going to check his alcohol tolerance.
You don’t have to force yourself, really.
But I won’t stop President since he seems to be enjoying it.
“Oh, this is delicious.”
Before I knew it, Suzumoto had also opened the crystal bottle.
“It’s good? Then I’ll take some too.”
And then, I took some for myself.
…The moment I drank it, I was shocked.
Because this…
“Sugar water…!”
It’s so sweet that I actually started wanting the bottle President took, due to its overwhelming sweetness. What is this?
“Whoa, what’s that? I’m curious.”
Hariu came over to taste it.
“Wow, sugar water!”
And, he was equally shocked.
“Eh, I’m curious too.”
“Ah, can I have some too?”
Everyone came over to take a few milliliters for a taste test, and each time, they were all shocked.
This isn’t just sweet; it’s beyond sweet.
It’s somewhat thick, but the taste is like honey or sugar, so yeah, it’s a bit much to drink straight, you know?
“Shouldn’t this be mixed with something, gentlemen? Especially you, Suzumoto.”
“No, I’m good with it as is. It’s delicious.”
Hmm, probably the biggest sweet tooth in this group isn’t Maito but Suzumoto.
There was this one time at camp where we played Russian roulette with cakes.
Then, for some reason, President made an extremely sweet cake with sugar sandwiched between the sponge layers… and Suzumoto got it, ate it normally, and then started eating whipped cream with extra sugar.
Hmm… Well, people can be surprising, can’t they?
After a while, suddenly, a huge bird crashed into the classroom window with a bang, and we all looked to see it seemed to have crashed into the window and fallen.
Everyone’s reactions are slow, no good.
“What do we do with that?”
“Catch it and deep-fry it.”
“Ah, then I’ll go.”
I seemed to be the least drunk among us, and it seemed like I could handle it alone, so I decided to go outside and swing my halberd around.
Eventually, one by one, more giant birds came flying at us, so I ended up slashing away at about eight of them with my halberd. Man, that was a hassle. Completely sobered up, feeling like I lost out.
…And when I returned indoors.
Well, it’s not like, I think we were being careless.
We were drinking alcohol, whether it was sweet or bitter.
And for most of us, it was our first time (I think?) drinking alcohol.
I believe everyone could control themselves? Nobody threw up.
Kariya and Katori were having a conversation filled with bleep-worthy words.
Kariya became talkative, and Katori was just smiling and spilling bleep-worthy words non-stop.
Well, yeah, we’re high school boys. Can’t help it!
President has been furiously opening that brown bottle and recording something in a notebook since earlier.
So, I decided to go take a look.
“President—”
“What’s up? Do you want some? I don’t mind, but I think this should probably be diluted with ice or water. Wonder what the alcohol content is. Maybe Maito could drink it if we add sugar.”
Oh, he’s drunk, so drunk.
“No, just came to check on you.”
“I’m fine. I am drunk but I’m still sane. If things really get bad, I’ll drink an antidote. Please take care of Kadomi, if you can. He’s been like that for a few minutes. If he’s going to sleep, we should lay out a futon for him, and if he needs an antidote, use this.”
Hmm, he’s so talkative, he must be really drunk.
Well, it’s fine. President will probably handle it, maybe.
Taking the bottle of antidote, I decided to go check on Kadomi.
Just as President said, Kadomi was sprawled out.
He was curled up in a spot overshadowed by Kariya and Katori, so I missed him.
“Kadomi-kun.”
“No way…”
“Kadomi-kun.”
“…Nyu.”
Ah, this is no good!
…Maybe I should start by asking the two who seem to know the situation best!
“Ah, Kadomi-kun? He was talking with us until just now, but as the conversation progressed, he started drinking faster and ended up like this.”
“We were having quite a deep conversation. Maybe it was too much for Kadomi-kun.”
Hmm? What kind of conversation was it, I wonder?
…Well, I can guess.
“Kadomi-kun, want to drink an antidote?”
“…Nai…”
Ah, he’s really out of it!
“Is Kadomi-kun okay?”
Hmm, well, if he throws up, Maito’s “Cleaning” can take care of it in one shot, so it’s not too risky, but if he’s feeling awful, we should do something to help him.
“Should I give him mouth-to-mouth for the antidote?”
“Um, I think that would be cruel to Kadomi-kun.”
Ah, Kariya is seriously drunk. What is this? It’s super funny, but stop! Poor Kadomi-kun!
“So, Toriumi,”
You’d think Katori is more or less normal, right?
“Are you a [bleep] or [bleep]?”
This is why. Smiling while saying this.
“Hmm, [bleep] I guess. Anyway, we should do something for Kadomi-kun, right?”
“Yeah, maybe waking him up with Maito’s help is best. Should we prepare some water or something?”
…Is Katori drunk, or sober? Hard to tell.
So, I decided to look for Maito, but…
…Huh? What’s… what’s going on here?
“Hagasaki-kun,”
“What?”
“What’s this about? Huh?”
“Huh? This guy just started sleeping using my jacket as a blanket.”
“No, I’m more curious about why Hagasaki-kun’s leg is being used as Maito’s pillow.”
“This guy just started using my leg on her own.”
“You’re not moving?”
“Why should I?”
“Ah, never mind.”
He seemed a bit irritable, so I decided not to touch on that topic. Man, alcohol can be scary.
With no way to wake up Kadomi-kun, I decided to join Suzumoto and Hariu, who were spreading out cards.
“Let me join in, too.”
“Hahaha, after this game!”
“Yeah, it’s almost over, so it’s all good. Cut with an 8, double with a 2. I win! Ahahaha!”
…Suzumoto’s smile is 200% brighter than usual, and Hariu is smirking. I had a bad feeling and saw… ah, the crystal bottle is empty! Ah, this is no good!
…These two must be the kind who laugh when drunk.
For some reason, Suzumoto is laughing non-stop like he’s possessed, and Hariu is constantly smirking.
Hmm, kind of scary.
…Man, this is a problem. Everyone but me is drunk.
After a while of playing Daifugou with the three of us, I realized almost everyone was asleep.
“Toriumi-san, what should we do with this?”
President was the only one awake. Yeah, he was in bad shape a while ago, but he took an antidote and recovered on his own. Amazing self-control and rationality! Like a game of chicken!
“Hmm, should we just cover them with blankets?”
“That sounds good.”
So, as a result of drawing the short straw or fulfilling a duty, President and I ended up covering everyone with blankets, and we also decided to sleep nearby.
Well, having something like this happen once in a lifetime isn’t too bad, right?
“Ah, good morning.”
When I woke up, Maito was making miso soup.
“…Hey, Toriumi. What happened yesterday? I remember up to the point where we were drinking that fruit wine, but it seems like I fell asleep hard after that.”
Ah, so Maito went to sleep relatively early?
…Does that mean she doesn’t know about everyone’s drastic changes?
“Well, a lot happened.”
“That ‘a lot’ is what I’m curious about.”
“Hmm… maybe there are things it’s better not to know?”
“That just makes me more curious!”
…For the sake of everyone’s honor, I think I’ll keep quiet.
Later on, those who were hungover took President’s specially made antidote, which was so bad it made things worse for them. But, well, it’s a lesson learned. Drink, but don’t let the drink consume you, right?
Guess alcohol isn’t really something to mess with!